•Obasa’s son stirs controversy in  Agege, presidential aide in Yaba

…as odds favor ‘Able Abel’

As the tenure of the current local government administration winds down, tension is building across Lagos State political landscape.

The race to occupy chairmanship and councillorship positions in the 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) has thrown political parties, aspirants, and their sponsors into frenzy.

The Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) recently issued the official Notice of Election, setting July 12, 2025, as the date for the polls, with a possible re-run slated for July 19.

Meanwhile, campaigns had officially commenced on April 18 and would run through July 9. 

The LASIEC announcement has ignited a flurry of campaign activity, particularly in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), where aspirants’ posters now blanket the metropolis.

The APC primaries to pick its candidate hold on Saturday.

However, beyond the campaign buzz lies growing controversy, especially over alleged candidate impositions and unclear electoral guidelines.

The controversy, it was gathered, stemmed as a result of the need to plant loyal and influential candidates in place ahead of the 2027 general elections to avoid the shocking experience of the 2023 presidential poll where Labour Party’s candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, defeated then-APC standard bearer, Bola Tinubu, in the state.

“In other to maintain the current lead as a ruling party, there is the need to have the right candidates in place to make it easier not only for the presidential and gubernatorial polls but for other elective positions,” a party chieftain told Sunday Vanguard.

 ‘Baba Sope’ Politics

 Some party faithful are worried over the return of what they described as ‘Baba Sope’ politics.

Baba Sope is imposition of candidates in local parlance. 

Accusations of political godfatherism and imposition within the APC reached a head following the endorsement of Abdul-Ganiyu Obasa, son of Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, for chairmanship of Agege LGA.

The endorsement triggered protests, particularly in Ojokoro LCDA, where angry party members and youths disrupted a stakeholders’ meeting over what they described as an attempt to impose an outsider.

Placards with messages like, ‘Obasa should not impose a chairman on us from Agege’, and, ‘You can’t bring a stranger to lead us’, reflected the deep resentment among the party supporters.

“We reject any attempt to sideline loyal party members who have served this council,” said Mr. Olusegun Akinoso-Olawaye, one of the protest leaders. “Let everyone test their strength at the primaries.”

Similarly, Mrs. Bola Ojetayo, another protester, decried what she termed the commercialization of leadership: “A stranger should not come to our home and be allowed to lead us”.

Despite the uproar, Mr. Oluwagbenga Abiola, the sitting Vice Chairman of Agege LG, stepped down and endorsed the younger Obasa, citing party loyalty and political mentorship under the Speaker.

 Stepping down

 Meanwhile, President Tinubu has reportedly nullified the endorsement of Obasa’s son by APC chieftains in Agege, ordering the Speaker to pull out his son, Abdul-Ganiyu, from the race for Chairman of Agege Local Government.

It was gathered that the measure is to pave way for another appointment penciled down by the president as announced by party leaders upon returning from a meeting with him in Abuja.

Tinubu had stressed the need for emergence of popular candidates via fair and open contests within the APC for the polls.

Sources close to the development in the Presidency confirmed that Tinubu instructed that all APC aspirants for the polls be given equal opportunity.

In response, Obasa allegedly urged those who had previously stepped down for his son to resume campaign and collect nomination forms ahead of the APC primaries set for July 12, 2025.

Abdul-Ganiyu had been absent from the APC on-going screening exercise in Ikeja.

Also, checks by Sunday Vanguard revealed that at least 650 nomination forms for the 57 slots had been purchased for chairmanship positions, while about a million had been purchased for councilor positions out of 114 available slots across the 57 councils.

 Transparent Primaries

 In Ikeja LGA, another aspirant, Abisola Omisore, called for a free and fair APC primary while receiving his nomination form from the Ikeja Progressive Youths. His call was echoed by Tayo Aderinola, who withdrew his candidacy in support of Omisore, citing wide consultations and the need for unity.

Amid growing internal dissent, the APC inaugurated an electoral committee led by former National Legal Adviser, Babatunde Ogala, to oversee party primaries and pre-election processes. In view of that, the Lagos APC spokesman, Oluseye Oladejo, called on aggrieved members to seek peaceful resolution mechanisms within the party structure.

YABA LCDA: Presidential aide allegedly dropping Tinubu’s name to impose aged uncle…as odds favour Able Abel

 The scenario in Agege is reportedly playing out at Yaba LCDA, where a presidential aide is said to be backing a chairmanship aspirant for the APC nomination.

The aide, who allegedly previously worked as a housemaid at Tinubu’s Bourdilon residence in Lagos, is allegedly dropping the president’s name in the campaign for his aged uncle for the party’s chairmanship ticket.

Sunday Vanguard reliably gathered that the aide has been meeting with stakeholders and party leaders in secret, asserting that the President has given him the mandate to nominate the APC candidate for Yaba LCDA. 

This development has raised questions about the party’s commitment to democratic principles and the potential for undue influence in the nomination process.

An APC chieftain, while decrying the development, said ‘Baba Sope’ has been part of the party from the onset.

The source revealed that the party’s aspirants are heavily reliant on endorsements from influential figures within the party.

According to him, over 98% of APC aspirants are seeking endorsements from powerful individuals.

But the odds to pick the APC ticket for the chairmanship election in the LCDA appear to favour Hon. Abel Enikanologbon, popularly known as Able Abel.

Three factors, according to sources in the area, make him the candidate to beat for the ticket.

One is his popularity as his candidature is said to be acceptable to the broad spectrum of the people of the LCDA including youths, the elders, men and women.

Two is that his ward has the lowest number of elected or appointed pubic officials in the area, thus making it politically expedient to compensate the ward by supporting him to get the ticket.

Whereas a ward in the LCDA has senator, House of Reps member, a commissioner and board chairman at the federal level, the only appointment his Ward B has is Supervisor at Yaba LCDA.

Three, Able Abel is well qualified for the LCDA chairmanship in terms of education and being a loyal party man.

The aspirant himself was upbeat about his chances when he spoke about his manifesto, promising a transformative agenda anchored on good governance, digital innovation, and inclusive development for Yaba LCDA.

The APC hopeful laid out an ambitious vision for the LCDA, touching on key sectors such as education, healthcare, economic empowerment, infrastructure, and civic engagement.

“Our people deserve a government that works for them — one that listens, plans, and delivers. That is what I stand for,” he declared.

Able Abel outlined plans to overhaul primary school infrastructure, introduce ICT centers in public schools, and provide free meals to at least 50,000 pupils and also pledged annual scholarships and school supplies for 3,000 students.

“If we empower our children today, we secure our future,” he said, stressing the importance of digital skills and equitable access to learning.

On healthcare, the aspirant promised a people-first approach, focusing on access, quality, and affordability. His proposals include recruiting more healthcare workers, upgrading health facilities, ensuring a regular drug supply, and launching a Community-Based Health Insurance (CBHI) scheme.

“No resident of Yaba should have to choose between health and survival,” Enikanologbon assured.

Addressing the economic challenges faced by small business owners, particularly market women and artisans, Able Abel proposed the establishment of Trade Centers and Business Cooperatives, provision of shared workspaces and storage facilities, and the introduction of low-interest microloan schemes.

“Economic empowerment is not a slogan; it is a necessity,” he stated.

On infrastructure, the aspirant promised a complete overhaul of the area’s aging roads, drainage systems, and waste management infrastructure. “We must build a Yaba that works — where roads are motorable, drains are clean, and the environment is safe and livable.”

He also unveiled plans to boost cultural tourism, proposing an annual Yaba Cultural Heritage Day to celebrate the LCDA’s rich traditions, music, and arts.

“Our culture is our identity. Let’s use it to unite us and create economic opportunities,” he said.

Security and governance featured prominently in the manifesto.

Able Abel announced plans to set up a Local Security Advisory Board and encourage community policing through regular town hall meetings and neighborhood watch collaborations.

“Security is a shared responsibility. We will bridge the gap between citizens and law enforcement,” he promised.

On civic engagement, the aspirant proposed the launch of a digital open data portal to promote transparency in governance. “People must know what’s being spent, where, and why. That’s how you build trust and accountability,” he explained, adding that residents would have direct input into policy through regular engagement forums.

To back his proposals, Able Abel detailed a roadmap for implementation, including a Policy Implementation Task Force and partnerships with private sector actors. He assured that his administration would be driven by measurable targets, quarterly reports, and responsible budgeting.

The APC aspirant said his manifesto was not just a campaign document, but a contract with the people of Yaba.

“This is our shared vision. Together, we will make Yaba LCDA a model of progress, innovation, and people-focused leadership,” he concluded.

 LASIEC under Fire

 LASIEC, on its part, is facing mounting criticism for what opposition parties described as inadequate consultation and a lack of transparency.

At the heart of the backlash is the commission’s inclusion of the 37 LCDAs in the elections despite their controversial legal status and its unilateral release of electoral guidelines without input from the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC).

IPAC Lagos Chairperson, Mrs. Temilola Akinade, described the LASIEC approach as “neglectful,” citing unresolved legal questions surrounding LG autonomy and the Supreme Court’s interpretation.

Mr. Ayinde Olawale of the ACC and Mr. Dele Oladeji of the AP warned that their parties may boycott the elections if the LCDAs are recognized without constitutional backing. “We cannot participate in an election that disregards the rule of law,” Oladeji said.

 Assembly Summons LASIEC Boss

 In response to these concerns, the Lagos State House of Assembly has summoned LASIEC Chairperson, Justice Mobolanle Okikiola-Ighile (retd), to clarify the commission’s preparations and electoral framework. Lawmakers stressed the importance of transparency, particularly around election security and guideline implementation.

“The people are asking questions. We need LASIEC to address these issues directly,” said Rotimi Ajomale, Chairman of the House Committee on LASIEC and Public Petitions.

Other members, including Kehinde Joseph and Bonu Solomon, echoed calls for LASIEC to restore public confidence through stakeholder engagement and legal clarity.

Vanguard News

Dr Tunji Alausa, minister of education, made a frightening disclosure on Monday that, predictably, attracted little attention: Nigeria has a shortage of 600,000 medical doctors. Kindly read that again, this time slowly. Our attention is devoted to the 2027 presidential election, so we can be excused for missing the unhealthy piece of news. Nigerians were created for elections and politics. Nothing excites us more. Politics could be a good thing if it leads us to the road of redemption. After all, the real purpose of politics is the greater good of the society. Socrates, according to Plato in Gorgias, said the goal of politics is to make the citizens “as good as possible to live the best lives”. How I wish!

Politics and elections aside, we have an emergency in our hands but it seems we are going about our normal business. By any means, a shortage of 600,000 doctors is massive. We have the capacity to train only 10,000 doctors a year and that means it will take us the next 60 years to fill the gap. Wait. By then — that is, 2085 — our population will have exploded from the current 200 million to 741 million (according to PopulationPyramid.net). That means the doctor deficit will be in millions by the time we hope to have closed the gap, so training 10,000 doctors yearly for the next 60 years will still not solve the problem. Pardon me but there is no elegant way of saying this: we are in a hot mess.

We can use some emergency measures. Things are getting worse, what with the economic situation forcing thousands of doctors — who feel overworked and underpaid — to exit the country in search of fresh pasture. We thus have two significant problems: inadequate training capacity and exodus, known as “brain drain” in the 1980s (when many doctors migrated to Saudi Arabia) and now rebranded as “japa”. We are bleeding. The shortage is inflicting fatigue and frustration on the doctors who choose to remain in Nigeria, and the implications will continue to show in the quality of patient care. A doctor cannot be attending to a hundred patients per day and still be optimally productive.

In reality, there will be lethargy and apathy as the day progresses, and there could be loss of empathy as well. Misdiagnosis is not to be unexpected, and this may have nothing to do with the other obvious challenges, such as working conditions, inadequate facilities, obsolete equipment and unstable power supply. Many doctors also suffer depression not just from the workload but seeing avoidable deaths every day. Some things that modern technology has simplified are still being done manually. Some illnesses that could have been nipped in the bud at primary health care level have developed into chronic diseases, leading to a flood of patients at secondary and tertiary hospitals.

A visit to many public hospitals will break your heart. A country that values productivity will place, and pay, a premium on having a healthy population. Does this really bother us? In Nigeria, once you are rich enough to start checking your cholesterol levels, you no longer use public hospitals. You go to private hospitals that charge like five-star hotels or travel abroad for your medicals. It is the ordinary people — the tomato seller, the shoemaker, the truck pusher — that suffer the consequences of the inhospitable health care system. This is to say nothing about their inability to afford basic drugs, forcing many to resort to using some unproven but cheaper local alternatives.

I always ask myself: how and when are we going to get out of this mess? We can lament all we want, but lamentation cannot be a strategy. Doctor shortage is not limited to Nigeria. It is a global issue. When purpose-driven countries face this kind of crisis, they come up with a strategy to get out of jail. Some develop short-term to medium-term plans by recruiting foreign doctors from less buoyant countries. That is why Saudi Arabia and the UK have been coming for our doctors. But they are not stupid: they simultaneously pursue a long-term plan to train their own doctors. As they become more and more self-sufficient, they can start reducing the influx of foreign doctors into their system.

What are the plans for the short, medium and long terms to address this pathetic situation in Nigeria? Are we actively trying to improve the working conditions for our doctors? Are we actively encouraging students to study medicine? Are we improving training facilities? In 2015, my niece applied to study medicine at the Kaduna State University. She met all the requirements bar one: state of origin. She was told the programme was for Kaduna indigenes. Although her dad is from Ondo state, she was born in Kaduna and had lived there all her life. By the time she applied for admission, she had only been out of Kaduna thrice, all short trips. But her name meant she was not qualified.

Thereafter, my niece made several efforts to study medicine at other universities but had to settle for biochemistry because time was passing by. Her case is typical. The point I am making here is not about discrimination on the basis of state of origin. Rather, I am trying to point out the fact that we have thousands of students who want to study medicine but there are no spaces to accommodate them. We have universities bragging all over town that they had 2,000 applications for medicine but took only 200. This is a country that urgently needs more doctors! We would have to ask why it should be treated as a badge of honour that students who want to study medicine are being blocked.

I am happy that the minister of education is highlighting this issue. The minister of health, Prof Muhammad Pate, has also expressed worries over the exodus of doctors abroad. However, a crisis of this nature requires extraordinary measures. For a start, are we expanding training capability and capacity? Our first line of action until recently was to curtail the number of medical school intakes. The ceiling used to be 5,000 per year. We, thankfully, increased it to 10,000, but it is glaring that it is a drop in the ocean. I am not saying we should over-admit students or lower the standard. Medical training is delicate and we can’t turn our schools to Dugbe market. But we need to scale things up.

However, I am honestly at a loss as to what to do with doctors who “japa” after the country has spent so much money training them. It is a very complicated matter: we cannot restrict freedom of movement but how do get returns from our highly subsidised medical education? Some people have suggested a form of bond that will make the doctors who trained at public schools to work for the government for a number of years. This may make sense for the government in trying to get value for money but it may enrage the doctors, who would rather want to practise in places where they will get the kind of compensation they think they deserve. Well, there must be a solution somewhere.

We need to think, think and think. It is not only about how to address the health sector challenges. We generally have a severe thinking deficiency in policymaking. It always shows up in the way we approach issues. Recently, I commented on the Lagos state house of assembly’s resolution calling for the enforcement of the tenancy law to contain astronomical increases in rent. Housing crisis is usually caused by a supply problem in mega cites. In some other climes, government will come up with incentives — such as tax waivers and accelerated approval processes — to encourage private developers. Government will embark on affordable mass housing projects to reduce the deficit.

In my dearly beloved Nigeria, it is law enforcement that will address housing shortages! Just unleash government agencies on landlords and rent will start falling! This faulty reasoning is endemic in the lawmaking and policymaking spheres. I am forced to wonder at times if we actually think before we manufacture certain laws and reel out some policies. I am sincerely interested in the thinking process that leads to the drafting of some laws and policies. We behave as if we can just decree some things into being. I would implore our leaders to always take the chill pill, take a deep breath, think logically and consult widely before pouring a torrential rain of policies on us. We need to have some insight.

In a recent article, ‘If the Foundations of Logic Be Destroyed’ (April 20, 2025), I raised the issue of logical reasoning in our policymaking. I think many policies fail at the problem definition level. If the problem is not well defined and analysed, we will come up with solutions that are superficial. If the medical schools are overloaded, we tend to define the problem as that of having “too many applicants”, so we limit the number of intakes. We do not see the big picture. If rents are high, we think it is the landlords that are to blame, so we make laws to put them in their place (and it never works). If a road is prone to vehicle accidents, we always put the blame on the “reckless” drivers.

I recently came across excerpts of a book, ‘Sequential Analysis’, written in 1972 by the late Robert Holland, a respected figure at McKinsey & Company known for developing a practical framework for tackling complex decision-making. He recommended five sequential questions: (1) Is there (or is there likely) to be a problem (or opportunity)? (2) Where does it lie? (3) Why does it exist? (4) What could we do about it? (5) What should we do about it? (Note the “could” and “should”.) They are applicable to public policies as well. Questions 1 and 2 help define the problem we are trying to solve. Question 3 allows us to structure our thinking. Questions 4 and 5 help us to find a solution.

My sense is that many Nigerian policymakers and lawmakers start from either No 4 or No 5: what could/should we do about it? They define a problem by the “solutions” they already have in their heads. They take the short-cuts by avoiding rigorous thinking. This lack of sequential thinking often gives birth to policies that worsen rather than solve the problems they are intended to address. Until something changes in the way we attend to many national issues — such as doctor shortages, housing crisis, communal conflicts, herder/farmer clashes, and even environmental sanitation — we will keep making laws and policies that will end up having little or no impact on the society.

AND FOUR OTHER THINGS…

MELE MESS

Mr Bayo Ojulari, the new group CEO of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, is carrying out what looks like an extensive surgery on the leadership of the national oil company. To do an audit, he has fired the MDs of the three refineries. Mr Mele Kyari, the former GCEO, led an overhaul of the refineries running into billions of dollars, but it seems the reality on the ground is far from the claims that they have been working well and churning out products without fail. Industry experts are not surprised: “turn around” contracts have been the “oil block” of many NNPC bosses and petroleum ministers for decades. That is why we have refused to sell the refineries. Nigeria!

THE CBEX TRAP

Have you ever wondered why some people get burnt in tanker explosions while scooping petrol but that does not stop others from going for their own share? Despite all the hullaballoo over the CBEX catastrophe in which over 600,000 Nigerians lost an estimated N1.2 trillion, credible reports show that the crypto trading platform is still attracting new “investors” and taking money from the old ones. They are asking people to pay a certain fee in order to regain access to their accounts and get refunded a percentage of their “investments” in June. I can understand why old timers are vulnerable — they are still hopeful of recouping their funds — but what about their new victims? Delusion.

HEARTLESS MINISTRY?

Something is going on that should automatically trigger police investigation, but I assume they are yet to pick it up. A popular online prayer group known as Abba’s Heart Ministry suddenly went underground and there are now reports that many members might be held at a location without the knowledge or consent of their families and friends. The story is not yet clear, but the things I have read so far point to the possibility that this might be one of those religious cults that brainwash members into selling their possessions and handing them over to their leaders. We may have a real problem and I hope police are keeping a close tab before we start hearing of mass suicide. Wackos.

NO COMMENT

Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom state — who is also referred to as pastor — has been speaking in tongues all because he wants to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). “What Akwa Ibom people want is good governance, not the name of the party,” he said. “Whether Ibom Air or Air Peace, board the flight that is ready to take you to your destination. Board the flight and forget the name of the airline.” He doubled down days later, saying: “I see party as a vehicle to get to power. When you get there, please begin to govern everyone.” All manner of philosophy and poetry simply because of an impending defection. Just do it! Hahahaha.

The Rivers Professional Women League has dismissed claims by Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory (FCT), that they disrespected President Bola Tinubu and his wife, Oluremi Tinubu, during an empowerment programme held in Port Harcourt.

The league accused Wike of attempting to “spin the narrative” surrounding the incident, where some women walked out of the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) event sponsored by the first lady in partnership with the office of the senior special adviser to the president on sustainable development goals.

Wike, in a statement by his aide, Lere Olayinka, had alleged that the protest was orchestrated by Siminalayi Fubara, the suspended Rivers state governor, to embarrass the president and his wife.

But the league, in a statement signed by Nimi Fiberesima, its president; Jennifer Boms Wolugbom, the secretary; and Tambari Menete, director of publicity; said the minister’s claims were “false and misleading”.

“It is apparent that Rivers women did not and cannot walk out on the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu or disrespect her husband, President Bola Tinubu. Such a narrative is the imaginative spinning of Chief Nyesom Wike to blackmail Rivers people as always,” the statement reads.

“It is therefore unfounded and preposterous for Chief Nyesom Wike to suddenly conclude as always to say the least that Rivers Women embarrassed the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and by extension Mr. President.“

The group explained that they had been informed that the first lady would be represented by Fatima Abbas Tajudeen, wife of the speaker of the house of representatives, but were instead received by Theresa Ibas, wife of the state’s sole administrator.

This change, according to the group, triggered discontent among some attendees.

“Undoubtedly, Rivers women respect and love Mr. President, his leadership and his wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu and support her visionary empowerment programme, Renewed Hope Initiative,” the statement added.

“But the challenge is that often, Chief Nyesom Wike tends to be more Catholic than the Pope. He feels he is the only Nigerian that loves and supports the President most, and almost believes that the President’s breath depends on him.”

The group also cited a similar protest during an event in Delta state attended by the first lady, noting that it did not attract the same political undertone.

They accused Wike of spending more time stirring tensions in Rivers than focusing on his role as FCT minister.

[TheCable]

I see how my unwavering support for your cry for justice has sent your adversaries into a frenzy—resorting to desperate, laughable falsehoods.

Rest assured, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, the distinguished women of FIDA, and I will continue to stand with you wholeheartedly. Our commitment to justice is unshaken, and we will not relent until justice is served.

We simply despise injustice and the abuse of power. Period.

No sensible and decent person who knows my incorruptible track record is deceived by the ridiculous fabrications being peddled by your traducers.

They know—without a doubt—that no amount of money, not even all the wealth in every central bank in the world, can buy my convictions, voice, and stance on any matter I choose to support.

So, worry not, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan.

You will continue to have my unwavering, sacrificial support in your resolute fight against a brigade of irresponsible politicians, led by the Senate President, Godswill Obot Akpabio.

The world sees how they have captured our public institutions for their selfish benefit—corruptly abusing their positions to silence, intimidate, and endanger you. But they will fail.

Do not be discouraged by this latest onslaught.

We will continue to stand with you—demanding a fair hearing and an independent investigation into your petition against Senator Akpabio for sexual harassment.

The Senate President cannot dodge the inevitable forever.

To my fellow honorable citizens, we all know that sacrifice is foreign to most of Nigeria’s so-called political “leaders” (or should I say ruiners?). They cannot fathom the concept of service because money and their belly are their gods.

In contrast to their corruption and greed, I—like many of you—will continue, eternally, to live a purpose-driven life of sacrifice in the unrelenting fight for a decent and just Nigeria, where leaders are held accountable for good governance.

Every decent, reasonable Nigerian knows that my unshakable values, convictions, voice, and stance on public interest issues cannot be tarnished—no matter how hard they try.

Ignore their lies. Dismiss, with contempt, their desperate theatrics—a feeble attempt to divert attention from the sexual harassment petition against Senate President Akpabio by the distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. Demand justice for her, because “injustice to one is injustice to all.”

Madam Senator, as you so powerfully declared:

“This injustice shall not be sustained.”

We—along with every truly honorable and reasonable Nigerian—stand with you. Unwavering. Freely. All the way.

So, fight on until justice is served!

Today is yet another World Press Freedom Day 2025. The organic theme for this year is ‘Time to put AI on the social agenda’. On this World Press Freedom Day 2025, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the global voice for journalists, is calling for Artificial Intelligence (AI) to be at the top of the agenda in the social dialogue between journalists’ unions and media. Meanwhile, in line with UNESCO’s theme for this year, ‘Reporting in the Brave New World – The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom’, the IFJ urges journalists, unions, and media organisations to engage in collective action to ensure that AI serves the ethical creation of news, protects press freedom, and sustains jobs.

In its recommendations on the use of Artificial Intelligence adopted in June 2024, the IFJ highlighted that “AI cannot replace human journalists, and its output must not be considered ‘journalism’, save where it has been subject to appropriate human oversight and checking.”

Fact-checking and critical thinking are at the core of journalism: AI cannot do them independently. The IFJ warns in particular against bias, stereotypes and factual errors that can contribute to misleading audiences. The federation points that journalists are essential for these tasks. The rise of AI-fuelled online disinformation is another threat, requiring a response in the form of journalists’ scrutiny. Deep fakes are particularly challenging, reminds the IFJ. “Deep fakes are a direct attack on democracy and on people’s fundamental right to reliable and independent information,” says Anthony Bellanger, IFJ General Secretary. “Journalists are on the front lines of this drift, and their verification work is becoming increasingly important although complex.”

The IFJ is urging trade unions and media to address the issue of Artificial Intelligence, as part of their social dialogue. AI is reshaping newsrooms, automating routine tasks, assisting with data analysis, and even generating content. And here is the thing, this technology has the potential to improve efficiency and save journalists from doing mundane tasks such as data collection. But the IFJ is concerned that little has been done in the social dialogue to ensure the ethical use of AI in newsrooms, e.g. directly addressing clauses on transparency.

The Federation is particularly concerned that AI could ultimately replace editorial decisions, which are currently made by professional staff in newsrooms.

Besides, the Federation has specific concerns about the use of journalistic works to feed AI. This often automatic process can lead to journalists not being compensated for their articles, unless a specific agreement has already been made with the relevant media organisations. As we are just learning the ropes in this country, licensing agreements between news organisations and AI companies should ensure that journalists are fairly compensated for their contributions and allow journalists to opt out if they refuse their works being used in this way. There have been reports that professional bodies have initiated discussion points on this business dynamics of journalism.

This is quite important as we reflect on the themes this year: Unions and media should also ensure that journalists, including freelancers, receive proper AI literacy training. They should also help journalists make this work transition. That is the only way empowerment and compensation can accrue to practitioners in this age of the giants and disrupters.

“It is high time for everyone in the sector to jointly reflect on how journalism can adapt to the evolving landscape of AI, while safeguarding its ethical standards and the core values of press freedom,” says Bellanger. “The future of journalism is one where human oversight, transparency and accountability remain at the centre of AI usage. We must ensure that technology serves to enhance the work of journalists, not undermine it.”

The IFJ calls on all stakeholders – journalists, unions, media organisations and policymakers – to work collaboratively in developing AI guidelines that prioritise the rights and wellbeing of journalists. This goal should include setting clear boundaries for AI’s role in newsrooms, fostering transparency in AI processes, ensuring that journalists get compensated and can opt out of their work being used by AI, and protecting editorial independence. The Federation also highlights the importance of collective bargaining, to guarantee that journalists’ voices are heard as these technologies become more integrated into the media landscape.

Before we drew attention to concerns about threat to press freedom at home, it is fitting to note that leaders in global context don’t always walk their talk on freedom of the press. None of tem as I noted before, likes robust journalism. That is what Ms Marina Walker Guevara, Executive Editor Pulitzer Centre noted yesterday in her reflection on this year’s WPFD: Her words:

“Even for a president who insults journalists routinely over normal coverage of his administration, the latest tirade by Argentine President Javier Milei was shocking in its menace. It comes at a moment when officials from Washington to New Delhi are also inciting hatred of the free press. I am from Argentina, and I am a citizen of the United States. For the first time in 22 years living in the U.S., press freedom is under siege in both places I call home. In my book, this was not supposed to happen in the U.S., the country of the First Amendment, the Freedom of Information Act, Watergate, and the Pentagon Papers. Yet here we are, witnessing the Associated Press semi-banned from the White House; corporate media settling frivolous lawsuits by President Trump to protect their other businesses; storied journalists exiting storied programs such as 60 Minutes over a loss of editorial independence.  
It’s tempting to feel we have little to celebrate on World Press Freedom Day. Still, as challenges rise, the Pulitzer Center’s partner journalists and outlets are doubling down on rigor, independence, and creativity. The more they are threatened, the busier they get. Their stories spark dialogue and change, and they make powerful people uncomfortable.  Recently, OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, subtly discouraged his followers from reading Karen Hao’s much-anticipated book on Open AI, Empire of AI. Hao, who has pioneered the field of investigations on AI’s impacts, is the lead designer of the Pulitzer Center’s AI Spotlight Series, a state-of-the-art training program that supports journalists reporting on AI systems, companies, and economics.. . 

Reporting by another Pulitzer Center partner, Sofia Schurig of Brazil’s Núcleo, recently prompted Brazil’s consumer protection officials to request an inquiry into Meta, the social media giant that owns Instagram and Facebook. Schurig and her colleagues found 14 Instagram accounts featuring child sexual exploitation content generated by artificial intelligence; after the journalists contacted the company, Meta removed the accounts. Our mission at the Pulitzer Center is to make stories like these possible, and to develop compelling ways to connect audiences with journalism through art, education, civic dialogue, and more. 

We are convinced that amid our democracies’ struggles—and in spite of them—independent journalists will do their most consequential work”. 
Even as we are concerned about the AI bogey, we are nursing fresh concerns about press freedom in Nigeria, which easily the most significant civil society organisation, at the moment, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) are addressing today through a colloquium and a press conference. Journalists and civil society activists and leaders have been invited to grace at Radisson Hotel, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos. The gathering will be on the main concern: “Unchecked Injustice: How Authorities Are Weaponising the Cybercrime Act to Stifle Peaceful Dissent and Media Freedom in Nigeria.”  According to SERAP and the Guild of Editors, the jointly event will bring together media executives, civil society organisations, human rights activists and other stakeholders. 

The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) as a professional group of editors and media executives is to promote and defend the rights and interests of editors in Nigeria. The Guild’s mission is to foster excellence in editing and journalism, and to promote a free and independent press. Its objectives include, promoting and defending the rights and interests of editors in Nigeria.

SERAP is a non-profit, nonpartisan, legal and advocacy organisation devoted to promoting transparency, accountability and respect for socio-economic rights in Nigeria. SERAP received the Wole Soyinka Anti-Corruption Defender Award in 2014, and was nominated for the UN Civil Society Award and Ford Foundation’s Jubilee Transparency Award. SERAP was also nominated for the 2024 Columbia Global Freedom of Expression Prizes. SERAP is a member of the UNCAC Coalition, a global anti-corruption network of over 350 civil society organizations (CSOs) in over 100 countries, which is committed to promoting the ratification, implementation and monitoring of the UN Convention against Corruption.

The press conference will focus on assessing the state of human rights and press freedom in Nigeria focusing on the curious weaponisation of the Cybercrime Act to stifle peaceful dissent and media freedom both offline and online, while making recommendations to the Nigerian authorities to address and end the growing crackdown on human rights, media freedom and civic space in the country. In the middle of December 2024, the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) was resourceful and conflict sensitive, in this regard as it inaugurated a five-man committee to examine and review various anti-media laws in the nation’s statutes. This development came after the Guild expressed concern about the negative impact of the “plethora of obnoxious and anti-media laws” on practitioners and the country. 

According to the Editors’ Guild, the committee is on a peace mission and so would work with the office of Minister of Information and National Orientation, the National Assembly, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, and other stakeholders to amend the laws or repeal them outright.

The committee members include a pro-media rights activist and NGE member, Richard Akinnola; a lawyer/former Editor of Punch Newspaper, Gbemiga Ogunleye; former Editor-in-Chief/Managing Director of The Guardian, Martins Oloja; Deputy Editor-in-Chief/Chairman of the Editorial Board of Daily Trust, Idris Hamza, and the General Secretary of the NGE, Dr. Iyobosa Uwugiaren.

The Guild’s executive council noted that that its decision to set up the strategic committee was informed by the “chilling effects” of the legislations on the nation’s democracy and press freedom. Today’s colloquium and press conference is a reinforcement of that decision to use a stakeholder consultation to defuse tension between the state and the media.

In a December 2023 interaction with the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) officials, President Bola Tinubu declared that his administration would always respect media freedoms and divergent views. But there are bills at the federal legislature, which seek to give more teeth to the existing laws that the law enforcement agencies have been exploiting to arrest and detain journalists. This is a day to show some concerns about whether the # Project 2027 hitmen would indeed guarantee press freedom after free speeches and robust and public interest disclosures. That is why on this World Press Freedom Day, we appeal to citizens and all lovers of freedom to support “fearless journalism and protect the right to speak the truth.”

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has fired back at Meta Platforms Inc, warning the tech giant that its threat to exit Nigeria does not erase its legal responsibilities or liabilities under the Nigerian law.

Meta earlier today said it “may be forced to effectively shut down the Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in order to mitigate the risk of enforcement measures.”

Meta’s warning came after it lost a legal bid last week to overturn a ₦220 million fine imposed by the FCCPC for violations of data protection and consumer rights laws.

Reacting to this, FCCPC, in a statement on Saturday, described Meta’s threat as “a calculated” move aimed at “inducing negative public reaction and potentially pressuring the FCCPC to reconsider its decision.”

FCCPC noted that Meta threatening to leave Nigeria does not absolve Meta of liabilities for the outcome of a judicial process.

The Commission added that it found that Meta Parties engaged in multiple and repeated infringements of the FCCPA (2018) and the NDPR.

“These infringements included denying Nigerians the right to control their personal data, transferring and sharing Nigerian user data without authorisation, discriminating against Nigerian users compared to users in other jurisdictions and abusing their dominant market position by forcing unfair privacy policies,” FCCPC added.

“Interestingly, Meta had been fined for similar breaches in Texas ($1.5b) and only recently was asked to pay $1.3 Billion for violating E.U. Data Privacy Rules. Elsewhere in India, South Korea, France and Australia, Meta had faced varying penalties for similar breaches. But Meta never resorted to the blackmail of threatening to exit those countries. They obeyed.”

[Guardian]

Nigerian politicians fascinate me with their sheer inventiveness. Don’t write off any politician who still has breath in him. His dying embers can still trigger a conflagration. It was in that context that I decided to take another look at the recent threats by some politicians of Northern extraction to block President Tinubu from having a second term in 2027.

On May 29, 2025, the Tinubu administration will be two years old – just two years, and some people are already bewailing the turn-by-turn tradition in our unwritten constitution which makes us rotate the presidency between the North and the South. Tinubu’s Northern predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, was president for eight years.

The reason some of us can’t join Nigeria’s political jujitsu is because it is a very deadly sport with indeterminate rules. As soon as one begins to celebrate our seeming cohesiveness and encouraging handshakes across the four cardinal points of the River Niger, gbam! A massive shock jolts you back to reality reminding you that our middle name is atavism.

North As Kingmaker

“Tinubu could not have been president without the support of the North”, said Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, until recently the special adviser on political affairs to the president in the Office of the Vice President, who has now resumed his role as the voice of the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF). He argues that President Tinubu should not seek a second term, apparently because he thinks that Tinubu’s performance in the first two years has been sub-par.

Baba-Ahmed’s missionary journey round the major media outlets was closely followed by a release by the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) declaring that the North will only support candidates in the 2027 general elections who are committed to protecting and promoting the region’s interests.
“Northern Nigeria will remain faithful not to particular politicians or political parties but to those who care about our regional interests and are willing to promote and protect them”, said the chairman of the forum’s Board of Trustees (BoT) who is also a former Minister of Power and Steel, Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu. Predictably, Baba-Ahmed is also a member of the ACF.

Flexing his region’s political muscles. Dalhatu declared, “The North has 19 out of the 36 states, and we also have the FCT as a veritable component. We have a majority in the Senate, the House of Representatives, the National Economic Council, and the Council of State. The North occupies close to 75 percent of Nigeria’s land area and about 60 percent of the population.
He went on to issue what many people in the southern parts have since described as an open threat: “In the next six months, the North will decide where it stands. If the rest of the country wants to join us, fine. If not, we will go our own way. One thing is clear: nobody can become president of Nigeria without northern support.”

Arrogance

Nothing activates the bubbly Nigerian passion like football and politics. The verdict of many commentators of southern origin was that from the outbursts of both the Northern Elders’ Forum and the Arewa Consultative Forum, the ‘North’ has not yet purged itself of what southern leaders regard as its traditional arrogance. They wonder if Tinubu’s predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, could have been president without the votes of the South, particularly the Southwest.

No part of Nigeria has an overwhelming majority over the others, meaning that in the same vein, no Northerner can become president without southern votes. So, why divide the people based on the region of origin instead of addressing pertinent socio-political issues such as the economy, spate of insecurity, political restructuring etc.

“Enìkan kì í jé àwádé”, is a popular Yoruba proverb, which could be translated as, “One individual can’t announce his presence by saying, ‘We have come’. I doubt if Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed and his co-travellers have ever heard this.

We all know how diverse Northern Nigeria is. We know, too, the various forces at play in that part of Nigeria. While we continue to pray that God intervenes in the mayhem going on between adherents of different religions and ethnic nationalities in addition to the sheer criminality raging there, it is too presumptuous of any individual, no matter how many times he has enjoyed government appointments, to claim to speak for the entire North.

Agreeing with the above point, the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has declared that the NEF does not speak for the entire North, describing the body as a political burden to the region.
Toeing Matawale’s line, another body, the Progressive Northern Elements, in a statement signed by its Chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Mohammed Modibbo, said it was too early for the Northern Elders Forum to start finding faults in a President they supported to win an election.

“The Northern Elders Forum should know that an average northerner is wiser now and can’t be cajoled to fight any southerner in power as President. Our position is clear, we believe in any government or leader that will make the North and every other region better. Nothing less.”

Lamido’s Crystal Ball

If anyone can plot how to unseat a political personage, given the dancing chess board that Nigerian politics has become, that person would be Alhaji Sule Lamido, former Governor of Jigawa State and founding member of the PDP. If wishes were horses, Lamido would want his party, PDP, to be in power; but being a realist he warns that the task of unseating Tinubu is not for opportunist rabble-rousers.
In Lamido’s view, “It is going to be difficult with Tinubu, with his hold on the country, on the economy, and his audacity to say this is where I stand …. Tinubu is very daring; he is his own creation. He is a self-made man, right from Chicago, what he went through on the streets. Look at how he was able to fight the Alliance for Democracy and Afenifere and then Obasanjo.”

The former governor added: “At the APC convention, Buhari was against him but he defeated Buhari. What are you talking about? Don’t underestimate a man like that… There is no Nigerian like Tinubu who has been there on his own. Every established political arrangement, every institution, he demolished them. Now that he is in charge, he is not going to be easy to deal with.”

Many enlightened people wish that the meetings of the Northern Elders’ Forum and the Arewa Consultative Forum were actually meant to address the almajiri problem in the North, youth unemployment, re-calibration of parasitic local government structures, the national economy, illegal mining, insecurity in the North and other problems militating against the people.
I bet you, many of the itinerant campaigners are just one appointment away from disembarking from the protest train and retreating quietly to savour the perks of their new office. It will do them no harm to take Lamido’s advice.

Peter Obi/El-Rufai Ticket

On the flip side of the coin, the former governor also warned President Tinubu not to push people to the wall:

“You see, the domestic cat fed on small chickens, but one day, the mother of the chickens stood up to the cat. Tinubu is that cat.”

The word in town is that the Mother Hen has arranged a Peter Obi/El-Rufai presidential ticket to ‘de-cat’ Tinubu in 2027. There are interesting days ahead!

The question is, do the desperate politicians threatening to turn day to night have the discipline, resources, moral suasion, vision, and virtual death-wish to live up to their grandiloquence?

A week after resumption for the third term, rainstorm at the weekend destroyed the hostels of the Federal Government College (FGC) in Ikot Ekpene local government area of Akwa Ibom State.
It also affected other critical structures in the school.

Although no life was lost, LEADERSHIP Sunday gathered that the heavy downpour on Friday evening, accompanied by a strong windstorm, affected several buildings in the expansive school.
The worst affected were the perimeter fence bordering the girls’ hostel, Basic Science Laboratory, classroom blocks for JSS1, 2 and SS2, administrative buildings and the vice principals’ offices.
Other facilities destroyed by the rainstorm included the school e-Library where set of computers were damaged, solar panel water pump, water storage tanks at different locations in the college and the generator house where a tree collapsed on the roof and damaged the entire power house.
In a viral video in Uyo, female students were seen crying and running helplessly, seeking refuge.

According to an administrative officer who declined to be named, most of the affected students have been crammed into another hostel not seriously affected by the natural disaster.

Meanwhile, the incident has compelled the school management to postpone further resumptions for the boarding students who were expected to return on Saturday, May 3, and Sunday, May 4, 2025, especially those in JSS1, 2; SS1 and 2 classes so that the facilities could be fixed by the federal government before the students return.

Consequently, the chairman of the Parents/Teachers’ Association (PTA), Dr J.J Etim, has appealed to parents to hold back their children and wards yet to return to the college “till further notice.”

[Leadership]

IS there morality in politics? Or, should there be morality in politics? Governors of Akwa-Ibom and Delta States, Umo Eno, Sheriff Oborevwori and ex-governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, are of the opinion that there isn’t. Or, there shouldn’t be. They made this known last week in epistles that should be fittingly entitled, “An ode to betrayal and betrayers”. Like blabbering kid thieves caught stealing from a pot of soup, Eno and Okowa waffled pitifully, in a manner that beggars belief, on why they abandoned/abandoning the PDP, a faithful political kin, which threw them up from obscurity to prominence and redoubtable wealth.

When the discourse is about betrayal and betrayers, my people walk a profound path. They recourse to an allegory which carves an imperishable place of pride for a faithful animal, the pigeon, Ẹyẹlé. With this, they paint the distastefulness and horrid colour of betrayal. In the ode to this evergreen bird, they hold aloft her fidelity to an unwritten bond of friendship. So, my people say, the Ẹyẹlé, which daily eats and drinks from the House Owner in time of plenty, will not break that bond even when the House Owner faces life’s existential travails. Unlike the Ẹyẹlé, Eno, Oborevwori and Okowa would seem to have chosen political harlotry for which Nigerian politics/politicians are known and are so audacious enough to flaunt it in the people’s face.  

Political Iscariotism has become a punishing phenomenon in Nigerian politics. On a national television last week, former PDP presidential running mate, Okowa sought all manner of ways to legitimize why a pigeon should abandon the House Owner in his autumn, hi moment of decline. Asked what he found in the pot of soup that made him cup his hand suggestively, Okowa said the move was in the best interest of Delta State.

In the same way, Pastor Umo Eno, governor of a state whose successive governments have repeatedly mouthed their wedge to PDP as “the state’s religion”, found ideology as the 30 shekels to collect for betraying the PDP and his people. He found a troubling anecdote to tell about a traveler and two airlines for a reinforcement of his blabbering thesis. At a Town Hall meeting held for the Ukanafun Federal Constituency last Tuesday, speaking in Ibiobio, Eno put his duplicity in perspective. He then came across as seeing politics as indistinguishable from prostitution. Apparently seeing the need to reify his betrayal, Eno thereafter appeared on a radio programme where he attempted to demonize ideology in Nigerian politics.

The bible, which Eno reads, is very profound in telling the story of betrayers and betrayal. Bible scholars say in that holy book have 50 verses about betrayal. It runs from the story of the patron-saint of betrayal, Judas Iscariot, Delilah and the Philistines, David’s betrayal of Saul, the Absalom story and repeated pronouncements like “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise up against parents…” If the bible were to be re-written today, with Eno’s betrayal in mind, his unkind cut of betrayal of a party that brought him from obscurity to limelight would make the 51st story of betrayal.

Whether in literature, politics or everyday life, betrayal provides no variation. But politicians, trying to be clever by half, say that in politics, unlike literature or our everyday relations, betrayal isn’t an anomaly but the water with which they bathe. To escape from the damnation awaiting betrayals, they make a distinction between betrayal and what is called “political compromise.”

However, while political Iscariotism of the kind of Umo, Oborevwori and Okowa is selfish, self-serving and greed-propelled, the ones of pre-independence Nigeria were ideological. The second case of decamping happened in 1951 between Nnamdi Azikiwe’s NCNC and the AG.

Another very epochal case of decamping happened during the First Republic when Chief Ladoke Akintola, and his rump of party faithful moved over to form the United Progressive Party, (UPP) which later formed an alliance with the NCNC to become the Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP).

In the short-lived Second Republic of 1979 to 1983, a gale of political defections also occurred. The most epochal of them was the shifting of alliance from the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN)to the ruling National Party of Nigeria (NPN) by Ondo State Deputy Governor, Chief Akin Omobioriowo with allies like Olaiya Fagbamigbe. The other was that of Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, governor of Kano State. Rimi fell out with his political mentor, Mallam Aminu Kano in May 1983 and decamped from the PRP, under whose banner he became governor, to the Nigerian People’s Party (NPP) to contest the 1983 elections. As an underscore of the political morality obtainable at this time, Rimi resigned his position as Kano State governor since he was leaving the party under whose banner he vied for the governorship ticket and was subsequently replaced by his deputy, Abdu Dawakin Tofa.

But, progressively, the colour of virtuous politicking in Nigeria waned, leading to shameless harlotry as a political credo. Okowa, Oberevwori and Eno’s epistles on leaving their political parties were hollow, feckless and irritating. Even among sex workers who change partners at the dictate of their thirst for cash, there is honour.

Yes, today, the PDP, like the anecdote of Ẹyẹlé and the House Owner, is facing its most harrowing political time ever, due to mismanagement, greed and power recklessness. Like mortal man who never learns, the APC is embroiled in same hubris, relishing its own self-proclaimed power immortality. Virtually all the PDP Ẹyẹlé, who supped and dined with it at a time of plenty, have abandoned the House. One of them, a tempestuous and vile character, was even made the Sheriff of Abuja as his own 30 shekels of Silver payoff, in exchange for agreeing to be the undertaker and pallbearer of the party.

The dearth of ideology in Nigerian politics is reputed to be the culprit of the political vagrancy that is worn shamelessly by politicians on their lapels. As divorcees consistently blame individual spouses for their marital fatality, Eno and Okowa hold ideology responsible for their harlotry. However, central to the existence of political parties is the place of political ideology. 

You may disparage PDP as I do; you may not even be able to stand the cantankerous Labour Party as I cannot. The truth, however, is that, if Nigerian opposition parties do not get their acts together, we may be doomed to stagnation. We then will have more Enos, Oborevworis and Okowas whose politics is indistinguishable from prostituting, who invariable give the APC and its Leviathan opportunity to fertilize the ground for the building of a cult of personality. It is the first step towards a totalitarian state.